The fact that the parsnip is a member of the carrot family comes as no surprise - it looks just…

Method

Heat oven to 160C/140C fan/gas 3. Heat the oil in large lidded casserole dish, brown the meat really well in batches, then set aside. Add the onion and carrots to the dish, give them a good browning, then scatter over the flour and stir. Tip the meat and any juices back into the dish and give it all a good stir. Pour over the Guinness and crumble in the stock cube. Season the stew with salt, pepper and a pinch of sugar. Tuck in the herbs and bring everything to a simmer.

Cover with a lid and place in the oven for about 2½ hrs until the meat is really tender. The stew can now be chilled and frozen for up to 3 months – defrost completely before reheating until piping hot. Leave the stew to settle a little, then serve with Creamy parsnip mash for a true celebration of winter vegetables.

Recipe Tip

Creamy parsnip mash

Boil 900g potatoes with 3 peeled,
chopped parsnips for 15 mins until
tender. Drain well, then mash with a
large knob of butter and 4 tbsp crème
fraîche or double cream. Season with
salt and pepper and serve piping hot.

Comments, questions and tips

I browned everything in the pan then finished cooking in the slow cooker. Added Worcestershire sauce and tomato purée as previous comments advised. It was perfect! And the the parsnip mash was delicious too. 5* recipe!

Adebrown

24th Mar, 2018

4.05

It's one of recipes to keep to it especially the sauce. I rushed it last time and I think over did the flour which made it a bit tasteless. I also put in mushrooms which goes very well.

mercuryzelda

19th Nov, 2017

5.05

Fantastic recipe. I added 200g baby chestnut mushrooms (browned them with the beef, and similarly removed & added them back in at the same time as the beef) and they are a really nice addition.

ah95

15th Nov, 2017

5.05

This was a lovely, rich, hearty meal. Perfect for winter nights. Following comments I added some tomato puree, worcestershire sauce and 2 knorr beef stock cubes, which made the gravy thick and flavoursome after 3 hours in the oven.

katycooks

20th Mar, 2017

5.05

I made this for a couple of friends who came round to celebrate St Patrick's Day. They demolished it! I made mine in the slow cooker and I think that makes all the difference to the sauce, which was really rich and delicious. Other than the time it takes to brown the meat, this is a very easy dish to just prepare and then leave the slow cooker to do it's thing. I served mine with Colcannon.
One thing I would say is that I think getting your braising steak and cutting it up yourself makes sense rather than getting stewing beef packs (which are all odd shapes and sizes). When you cut it up yourself you can cut out any gristle you find and keep the pieces uniform in size. Takes a bit longer, but is worth the effort I think.

blackrock63

18th Oct, 2016

As Linda Belcher commented, I added one tablespoon of Worcester sauce, a bunch of chestnut mushrooms from Tesco, I added 3 tablespoons of flour to thicken the sauce. I also added about a tablespoon of soy sauce and some chilli flakes to warm the dish up
Thanks to LindaBelcher as I wouldn't have tried the dish if I hadn't read her comment

LindaBelcher

17th Jul, 2016

The recipe itself as shown comes out a little bland so I wanted to share some tips I used to jazz it up!
When you're browning the onions, add a couple of cloves of chopped garlic to the mix! Makes a huge difference.
If mushrooms are your thing, add a handful of dried porcini mushrooms to the mix and about 2 cups or baby Bellas of chestnut mushrooms. The porcini especially gives a lot of flavor
Add a tablespoon (or to taste) of Worcestershire
Instead of water and a bouillon cube, use only beef stock, or double up on the bouillon. Remember to add enough flour to help reduce that watery texture.
Lastly, sea salt and cracked black pepper. If you add it into the actual stew then it has more time to incorporate it's flavors into the rest of the dish!

Carras1982

29th May, 2016

3.05

Underwhelmed.....it was fine, but nothing special. We were both so starving that we wolfed it down but to be honest the sauce was really watery, the Guinness didn't really add any flavour and I've done better casseroles in my slow cooker.
Nothing wrong with it but instantly forgettable.

reevey

30th Apr, 2015

3.05

Great recipe but nothing exciting. We cooked this in France last week for a bunch of 8 skiers and everyone enjoyed it but that was it.
I'd score it 7.5 but could do better

raquelquefois

8th Feb, 2015

My family loved this and particularly the rich meaty sauce. Delucious!

Pages

Thanks for your question. Yes, you can adapt this for the slow cooker. Take a look at our guide to help you out: https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/howto/guide/10-top-tips-using-slow-cooker

magicmushroom

16th Sep, 2018

4.05

This is a good base recipe but I did make a few additions as per suggestions in the comments.
I added celery, also a good glug of Worcestershire sauce, a heaped teaspoon of tomato purée and a little water.
I also popped in some mushrooms and potatoes about 1.5 hours in.
I cooked for 3 hours in total, uncovered for the last 30 mins so the sauce could thicken a bit.
Beautiful! The meat was very tender and the sauce delicious.

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